Wilson Sensation 16 String Review

A string review by Tiffani

Any credible history of tennis string should include a chapter on Wilson Sensation, one of the oldest and most popular multifilaments ever made. To see if this string has stood the test of time we had Tiffani, our multifilament expert, put it to the test. Here is what she said.

Power

This is right on par power-wise with Wilson's NXT. I got plenty of pop off the stringbed, noticed some good zing on my shots, and particularly enjoyed hitting a flat backhand up the line. This is the kind of string that is just right for my style of play. As a counterpuncher, I'm more apt to feed off my opponent's power, but this gave me a bit of extra firepower, allowing me to go for more winners.

Spin

Sensation was pretty spin friendly compared to some other multifilament strings, such as Wilson NXT or Tecnifibre NRG2. It's not a spin machine for me, but then, I'm not a spin machine. I tend to hit fairly flat, but when I needed to throw in a topspin lob or some slice there was more grab on the ball than I get from some other multifilaments, so I found some good success.

Comfort

I found this to be a pretty soft, comfortable string. It's not quite as soft as NRG2, but I still found it very comfortable at all times, even on off-center hits. Right off the stringing machine it felt firmer than NXT, but it loosened up quite quickly and the comfort level improved after the first hit. At 55 lbs the string felt a bit more like a synthetic gut, but it settled into the arm-friendly, multifilament feel after that first hour.

Control

Initially I felt the control was very good for a multifilament, but I did notice the control beginning to slip a little bit as the string began to drop in tension. It was not a wild difference, but I started to hit a few more shots long and a few more wide, so I needed to be a little more conservative with my shot selection as time went on.

Compared to other strings

This is very similar to NXT in playability, comfort and durability. Sensation may be slightly more comfortable, as the tension drop makes it feel livelier and softer after a short period. Sensation is a better value, but NXT comes out slightly ahead when it comes to durability. I'm also reminded of the old the Babolat Attraction string when I play with Sensation.

What do you like most about it?

For the price, this is great arm-friendly string that offers good power and spin. I found a lot of the benefits of pricier multifilaments in a more budget-friendly package.